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Sus is the Christ, the Son of God: And Volume by Faith to bring men to a particiXII. pation of those Benefits, and the Salvation which Christ was the Author of; And that believing, ye might have life through his Name. These are written, ταῦτα, these, which may either refer to σημεία, these signs or miracles, referring to the former Verse, and many other figns, &c. but these signs, or miracles are written to confirm Jefus to be the Person he pretended to be, the Meffias, the Son of God, and consequently to confirm the truth of the Doctrine which he deliver'd; that by this confirmation, men might be induced to believe him to be the true Meffias, and to give entertainment to his Doctrine.

Or elfe (which is very probable) the word ταῦτα may refer to the whole Hiftory of the Gospel, in which you have an account of the Life of Chrift, and the Doctrine which he taught, and the Miracles which were wrought for the Confirmation of it. And fo we may look upon these two Verses as a con

clufion of the whole History of the Gofpel

Gofpel writ by the four Evangelifts. For as for the Chapter following, it Sermon seems not to be written by St. John VII. himself, but by the Church, probably as Grotius Conjectures by the Church of Ephesus, where he had refided, and whom he had acquainted with the particulars which are there set down; the principal of which is, the Prediction of our Saviour concerning his long life, for the fake of which the rest of the story seems to be brought in; which particular was not fit to be recorded till after his Death; I say, it seems probable that St. John ended his Gospel here, and that the laft Chapter was added by others, as the laft Chapter of the Pentateuch was added by some other after the death of Moses; and the last Chapter of Joshua after his death. And this feems very evident from the 24th. of the Chapter; where, after a relation of our Saviour's Prediction, concerning the Disciple whom Jesus loved, 'tis added, This is the Disciple which testifieth of these things, and wrote these things, (that is the foregoing History of the Gospel) and we know that his

testimony is true; Which seems plain

ly

ly to be spoken by fome other Perfons! Volume for it were improper for him to say XII. this of himself, We know that his testimony is true:

So that here seems to be the end of the Hiftory of Chrift which St. John wrote; and these two Verses seem to be the conclufion of the whole Gofpel written by the four Evangelifts; and then the sense of them will be this; Many other signs truly did Jesus in the prefence of his Disciples, which are not written in this Book; that is, The Disciples were Witnesses of many other Miracles which Chrift wrought, which they did not think necessary to set down in this Book, that is, in this History of Chrift written by the four Evangelifts: But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that delieving, ye might have life through his Name; that is, These things which are recorded in this History, this acaccount which is here given of the Life and Actions and Doctrine and Miracles of Christ, is fufficient to bring men to the Faith of the Gospel, to fatisfie men that Christ was the the Meffias, the Son of God, and consequently that his Doctrine is true.

And that this conclusion doth refer to the whole Hiftory of the Gospel written by the four Evangelifts, I am induced to believe upon these

two accounts.

Sermon
VII.

1. Because St. John's Gospel doth not feem to be intended for a Hiftory of the Life and Actions of Chrift: but an Appendix to the History, which had been written before by the other Evangelifts, and to fupply only what they had omitted. Therefore you shall find that he gives no асcount of the Genealogy or Birth of our Saviour, nor of his Sermon upon the Mount, which did contain the fum of his Doctrine, nor of any of his Miracles or his other Difcourses which are related by the other Evangelifts; nor doth he relate any more of the Hiftory of his Life, than was juft neceffary to bring in, and connect those things which he thought fit to fuperadd to the former Hiftory. So that confidering how defective this Gospel, taken by it felf,

is

(

is in the most essential parts of the Volume Hiftory of the Life, and Doctrine, XII. and Actions of Chrift, no Man can

think that St. John did intend this for a full and fufficient account of the Life and Doctrine and Miracles of Chrift; or that upon this imperfect relation, in which he had knowingly omitted many of the most material and confiderable things belonging to the Hiftory of Chrift, he could expect that men should receive full fatisfaction concerning him. Therefore I think it is highly reasonable, and almost necessary to conclude, that when he says, These things are witten, that you might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; he does not folely refer to the Gospel which was written by himself: but to the whole Hiftory of the Gospel, which was put together into one Book or Volume, which was compleated by this Appendix.

2. Another reafon I have for this, which doth much strengthen this conjecture, is what I find in Eufebius, in the 18. Chapter of the third Book of his Hiftory, where he tells us to

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